SLU Softball Gets Boost as 2 National Champion Players Return in 2026

Credit: SLU Athletics

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON www.si.com/onsi/softball

Two former Southeastern Louisiana players are making their return to Hammond. 

After spending two years with the Lions and then jumping to the Division II level with UT Tyler, the program announced in a press release that Cera Blanchard and Ka’Lyn Watson received extended eligibility by the NCAA for one final season.

Blanchard, a pitcher, and Watson, an outfielder, were key members of SLU’s 2024 Southland Conference Tournament championship team that finished 47-15 overall, making its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance and advancing to the Regional final.

Both were named first-team All-SLC and All-Louisiana selections, with Watson also becoming Southland Hitter of the Year and 2023-2024 SLU Female Athlete of the Year.

Coming off a Division II national championship with UT Tyler, Blanchard and Watson earned All-America, all-region, and All-Lone Star Conference honors, finishing 62-5 overall. Blanchard led the team in wins, going 22-3 in the circle with a 1.37 ERA. 

Watson was named LSC Newcomer of the Year, hitting .440 with eight home runs and 52 RBIs. She posted 17 doubles, six triples, and scored 59 runs. 

The two are now listed as graduate students on SLU’s 2026 roster. 

 "We're ecstatic to welcome back a pair of elite players in Cera and Ka'Lyn back to Hammond, America," head coach Rick Fremin said in the press release. "Both of them played such a key role in our first postseason run in 2024. Veteran innings are the hardest thing to replace as a coach, so having two high-level experienced players return to our program is a game-changer for us."

SLU recently closed out another historic year, with a 50-16 record that notched them as one of seven Division I teams to win 40 or more games in the last four seasons. The loss to Nebraska in its second straight Regional final appearance was heartbreaking, but now with the majority of the history-making roster to return, plus Watson and Blanchard, SLU will be one to watch in 2026.